


Mystery Isolated

by dogdogdog



Category: Scooby Doo - All Media Types
Genre: Canon Autistic Character, Daphne is Hard of Hearing, F/F, F/M, Found Family, Learning To Be In A Relationship, M/M, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Multi, Polyamory, Scooby is a service dog, They are all neurodivergent, they are all young adults
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-25
Updated: 2021-02-26
Packaged: 2021-03-17 13:34:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 13,383
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28975191
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dogdogdog/pseuds/dogdogdog
Summary: A bunch of scenes about the gang learning how to love each other. Since the pandemic hit, Mystery Incorporated has found themselves isolating in a shitty apartment. With the stress of not being able to solve mysteries, plus a global pandemic. Their relationship takes a toll, but it also blossoms in new ways.(This is my first fic. I'm not great at writing, but practice makes perfect)
Relationships: Daphne Blake & Velma Dinkley & Fred Jones & Norville "Shaggy" Rogers & Scooby Doo, Daphne Blake/Velma Dinkley/Fred Jones/Norville "Shaggy" Rogers, Norville "Shaggy" Rogers & Scooby Doo
Comments: 12
Kudos: 30





	1. Shaggy has a meltdown

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! First things first, I am a new writer so sorry if this isn't great. I'll get better. If you have any critiques of this work that would be awesome! There will be more chapters soon. Thanks!

It was mid-morning, probably Tuesday, and freezing outside. Shaggy stopped paying attention to what day was what months ago. Time didn't feel real since the pandemic started; it was harder to stay grounded when he wasn’t following his normal schedule.

He was watching some crime show in the living room of his shared apartment. Scooby, his dog and best friend, was laying on the couch beside him as he tried to pay attention to the television. The light above him was flickering ever so slightly and there were 6 or 7 birds in the bush outside the window. The latter was probably a result of Daphne’s most recent project, making birdhouses. The flickering light along with the high-pitched chirping was growing more and more irritating to Shaggy.

He was considering moving to another room when Fred and Velma approached from the kitchen, their conversation adding to the noise ringing through Shaggy’s head. Scooby noticed his tenseness and nudged Shaggy in the side, mumbling something that shaggy made out as “be right back.” Scooby’s absence made it harder for Shaggy to focus as his friend’s conversation continued.

“I don’t think that-"

_chirp chirp chirp_

“Yeah, that makes sense, but-“

The light flickered.

“What about-"

A commercial started on the TV.

_chirp chirp_

“What do you think Shaggy”

That was his name, they were talking to him now.

The light flickered again.

“Shaggy? Are you okay?”

_chirp chirp chirp_

“Shaggy?” He felt Fred’s hand on his shoulder.

“Shut up!” Shaggy couldn’t help but yell as he stood up from the couch. He stormed out of the room, past Scooby, who was carrying his noise cancelling headphones, and into the bathroom, the door slammed behind him. He turned off the light and leaned against the sink, as he felt tears fall down his face. His thoughts became blurrier and it was difficult to stay standing. A gentle knock came from the door, followed by a quiet voice.

“Hey, are you okay?” It was Fred again. His voice was a lot quieter than it was moments ago. Shaggy reached to open the door, and he noticed he was shaking. He managed to twist the knob and push the door open slightly. Fred pulled it the rest of the way and moved to enter the bathroom.

“Shut the door” Shaggy managed to say. Fred obliged and the door closed with a click. Before he could do anything else, Shaggy pulled the man into a tight hug, tears still rolling down his face, a stream of apologies came spilling out of his mouth in between sobs.

Fred hesitated before wrapping his arms around Shaggy to complete the hug. The added support made it easier for Shaggy to stay standing as he buried his face into Fred’s shoulder. They stood like that for a while, Shaggy crying silently while Fred held him close, until shaggy was able to take deep breaths again. He sniffled and moved to wipe his face. Fred dropped his arms and stepped back before speaking, his voice as gentle as he could make it.

“Do you want to go lay down for a bit? We can see what Daphne is doing if you want.” Shaggy nodded before realizing that the light was still off, and Fred couldn’t see him. He instead mumbled out a noise of affirmation and waited for Fred to open the door.

They moved to the bedroom, which at this point was just a room with their mattresses laid on the floor. After travelling in the Mystery Machine for so long, the gang wasn’t prepared to have to rent an apartment, and so some of their furniture was less than ideal. Shaggy curled up in a pile of blankets with Fred sitting beside him. This room was much quieter, and he was exhausted.

There was a knock at the door, and Daphne and Velma entered the room, with Scooby close in tow. Scooby immediately curled up with Shaggy, who started to pet him. The other three humans looked at each other nervously. Shaggy hadn’t really had a meltdown like that in front of the gang before, and he knew they were concerned for him.

“Lay with me?” was all he could say as his eyes grew heavier and heavier. The others moved to find a comfortable spot beside him on the blanket pile. It was calming, and Shaggy found himself drifting off to sleep.

***

He wasn’t asleep for long, judging by the light coming through the window. Shaggy opened his eyes and looked around. He noted that the rest of the gang were all still beside him. They were awake and signing back and forth between each other, their hands moving smoothly as they conversed silently. Shaggy took a moment to watch them, they were talking about some movie.

He sat up a bit, and the others ceased their conversation as they looked at him, worry still lining their faces.

“I’m sorry for freaking out on you guys” Shaggy said, signing along to make sure that Daphne could follow along, “It’s just the birds and the light and you were talking and… I just got overwhelmed. Like, I didn’t mean to yell at you.”

“We’re sorry too Shaggy,” Velma spoke up, “it was rude of us to barge into the room talking as loud as we were.”

“Next time we’ll try to be less rambunctious” Fred added, smiling at the use of the absurd word.

Daphne smiled and reached out to hold Shaggy’s hand. Soon the four were in a group hug. Shaggy couldn’t help but giggle as he held the others. Their presence made him feel better, like everything was going to be okay. Daphne was the first to pull away. She stood up and held up a hand towards the others.

“Come on, why don’t we go make lunch” She smiled.


	2. Daphne's "Wildlife" Adventure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Daphne finds herself running out of things to do and Velma finds herself as her source of entertainment. Shaggy is the most responsible of the group and Fred has a surprise.

Velma was perched on the kitchen counter. She was reading one of her old books, some mystery novel that Shaggy got her for her birthday when they were 17. She remembered this one, the innkeeper did it. But it didn’t matter that she already knew the ending. She enjoyed reading, and she liked the story. She was sipping from her third coffee of the day when a familiar redhead appeared in her peripheral vision.

Daphne was crouched behind their table, in a pair of camouflage pajamas and holding what appeared to be two cardboard toilet paper rolls taped together to look like binoculars; she was using them as such.

“What are you doing?” she questioned. Daphne jumped up out of her hiding spot as if she was surprised that Velma had spotted her.

“I was trying to observe the rare Velma in her natural habitat!” Daphne made an exaggerated frown. Velma snorted at the absurdity of her loved one. The sound caused Daphne to break character, and she giggled along to Velma’s laughter.

“but seriously,” Velma put her book aside and started to casually sign as she spoke, “wildlife watching? I thought you were into modern art this week.”

Daphne had the habit of picking up a new hobby every week, and then dedicating as much of her time as possible to it before giving it up a week later when she got interested in something else. The gang found it more charming than annoying, and it came in handy more often than not. It was one of the many great things about Daphne.

“No that was last week!” Daphne pouted, “but this week I’ve got nothing! Do you know how hard it is to find something that’s not boring when I can’t leave this stupid apartment! It’s a nightmare! I’ve been trying to go down my list of things to get into but none of them are sticking.”

Velma was surprised, she didn’t think about the impact of quarantine on Daphne’s ability to partake in hobbies. Its not like they had much in terms of things to do. They barely had furniture, and they never really needed things to pass time when they were on the road. The mysteries were enrichment enough.

“Okay then, but the camo makes you stand out, not blend in. You’re going to have to try harder to not be spotted. Where did you even get those?” Velma smiled, picking her book up again.

Daphne shrugged. She paused for a moment before running out of the room “Thanks for the advice!”

Velma couldn’t help but roll her eyes as she poured herself another cup of Coffee. This was going to be a long day.

***

When Shaggy got back from walking Scooby he shooed Velma off of the counter so he could make some lunch. Velma moved to the table and was startled when she noticed Daphne standing in the hall. She was dressed on all grey, and had her hair tucked into a hood. The blended into the wall quite well. _How long had she been standing there?_

Shaggy seemed not to be aware of her presence at all, and he carried on cooking, humming to himself as he did. Velma tried her best not to raise attention to the hidden woman and she turned back to her book. Daphne however didn’t seem too interested in remaining hidden as she started narrating.

“Here we have a Norvillius Rogerius in his most prime form. He has a passion for food and spends most of his day either cooking or eating.”

Shaggy seemed unfazed at Daphne’s sudden presence, and instead seemed more offended at her description.

“Untrue! I spend most of my day like, looking after you all. I swear you’d all combust if it wasn’t for me.” He said as he slid a plate with a grilled cheese in front of Velma and snatched her coffee cup out of her hands. He walked over and handed Daphne her plate. He planted a kiss on the top of her head before taking his own plate to the living room.

Velma was impressed. Nobody could make Daphne blush quite as much as Shaggy. The Redhead tried to hide it as she took off her hood and sat down beside Velma, but the redness in her cheeks was unmatched.

“I, for one, thought it was an excellent description.” Velma joked as she began to eat the grilled cheese. Daphne sighed before eating hers as well. She didn’t say anything else, but Velma knew she was scheming.

***

The sun was going down when Fred emerged from the cave he had built in their office. When the gang first moved into this shitty 2 bedroom apartment, they had planed to have the boys in one room and the girls in the other. That lasted about half a day. They realized that after sleeping in close quarters for so long on the road it didn’t feel right to sleep in separate rooms. Fred had been the first to break, citing the absence of Velma’s quiet snores as the cause of his inability to fall asleep. And so they had decided to use the other room as an office space. It was a small room, but they had dealt with smaller. Fred was good at organizing and had made a makeshift desk for them to use.

It definitely matched the rest of the apartment. Fred was currently using it as his “top secret project space” meaning the other’s weren’t allowed to enter. He entered the living room to see Velma and Shaggy acting like animals while an interestingly dressed Daphne narrated as if she was on a safari show.

“Now we see the Norvillius carefully approaching the rare Velma. How with she react to his invasion of her personal space? It looks like she is- wait, what’s this? A wild Scooby seems to be sneaking up on them from behind!”

“Wait, like what?” Shaggy asked before he was tackled by a playful Scooby, who licked his face. Laughing, Velma and Daphne tried to pull an overexcited Scooby off of their love. Fred rushed over to help as he fell into wat became a giant cuddle pile on the living room floor. After a few moments their laughter died down, and Fred spoke up.

“I take it you’ve had a fun day then.”

“It sure was interesting” Velma said from her spot beside Shaggy.

“What about you Freddy boy? Anything interesting go on in your top secret room?” Daphne giggled, snuggling into his side. Suddenly, Fred got up, making Scooby and Daphne roll out of his way.

“One second, I just finished it!” He said as he ran down the hall. The remaining four looked at each other with bewilderment. It wasn’t unusual for Fred to surprise them with things he’s created, but it had been a while since he was this excited about something. Fred returned with his arms behind his back. The rest of the gang sat up and waited in excitement for whatever Fred could possibly have.

“Okay, so I made this from memory, so I might be missing something. But I hope you like it anyways” Fred held out his hands revealing a relatively large paper box, clearly folded himself, that had a design on the top.

The entire gang’s jaws dropped.

Fred had apparently spent the day creating a personalized version of the board game Clue. Clue had been the gangs favorite game since they met. They must have played it hundreds of times when they were in high school. Each game was its own new mystery to solve, and their competitive sides always got the best of them when it came to who could solve it first.

“You didn’t” was all Velma could say as she stared in awe. She looked to Daphne and Shaggy, both of whom had tears welling up in their eyes.

The game itself was well constructed. Fred had used old cardboard for the board part, and household objects for the pieces. The games characters were changed to reflect their group, and they were using differently colored paper clips as their game pieces. The game map was a rough map of the library in Coolsville, which just so happened to be where the gang first met.

They all hugged Fred for a good 10 minutes, each with their own string of appreciation coming out of their mouths. Even Scooby was awed at the sincerity of the gift.

“I was gonna make a better version for our anniversary in a couple months, but I figured with everything going on you could all could use something to make you smile.” Fred’s eyes glistened in a way that Velma knew meant he was trying not to tear up himself.

They cleared a spot on the floor to make space to play, and they started to set up the game. The rest of the evening was filled with playful competition and a lot of reminiscing as the five reveled in the amazing gift. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey thanks for reading this! if you have any feedback please let me know! How is my portrayal of the characters so far? Is there anything I can work on making better? 
> 
> I hope you like it so far :)


	3. A very long day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The mystery machine breaks down leaving mystery incorporated stranded in the middle of nowhere. Shaggy has a lot on his mind about the gangs relationship.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This takes place a couple years before the rest of the story takes place. I just wanted to write a little scene about how they officially came together.

It had been a busy day for mystery incorporated. They were just wrapping up their latest mystery: an electricity demon was harassing a wind power company in the middle of nowhere in Idaho. Shaggy was surprised that they even came across the mystery in the first place, but then again it seemed like the universe was determined to put one in their path no matter where they were. The demon, of course, turned out to be one of the co-owners of the company who wanted to scare his partner into giving up his half of the companies profits. Velma was just finishing up explaining the scenario to the local law enforcement. _Ugh._

If there was anything that Shaggy disliked more than the monsters and ghouls that he dealt with on almost a daily basis, it was cops. Unfortunately, they ended up getting involved in a number of cases that the gang took on. Although, he did thoroughly enjoy the looks on their faces when Velma would explain how they solved the mystery. He liked the look on Velma’s face as she recounted the clues they used to solve the case too.

He felt a nudge on his side which brought him out of his thoughts. It was Velma, who had finished her longwinded explanation, and had a big smile on her face. Daphne and Fred were smiling as well, and they were swinging their arms together with contagious excitement. The gang tended to have a certain glow about them after solving a mystery.

“I would have gotten away with it if it weren’t for you meddling kids and your dog too!” The unmasked man said as he was being ushered away. Shaggy smiled at that. It seemed like every middle-aged rich dude that they thwarted all used the same phrase. He was sure the others had picked up on the pattern too, but none of them seemed to be that concerned. The remaining spectators made their way to their cars and drove away, leaving the gang alone in the parking lot.

“Well, that’s enough spookiness for me today,” Shaggy said “Like, how about we go get some dinner?”

His friends laughed at that. Fred threw an arm over his shoulder as they walked back to the mystery machine. Shaggy couldn’t help but blush slightly as the butterflies in his stomach went wild. Daphne and Velma yawned in unison as they approached the van. It had been a long day for everyone.

The other three humans climbed into their normal places in the front of the van while Shaggy and Scooby hopped in the back. Shaggy always felt nauseous when riding in the front, so he made a point of avoiding it whenever possible.

They were all eager to leave the empty and isolated parking lot. They waited patiently for the van to start moving but were getting concerned as the van stayed still. Shaggy was about to question what was taking so long, but Velma beat him to it.

“Is everything okay Fred?”

“Its not starting” Fred replied. He sounded frustrated as he continued to try and get the van to start.

“What? Why not?” Daphne spoke up from the passenger seat.

“I don’t know” Fred got out of the van to try and figure out the problem. They realized, after a few minutes of frantically searching for the problem, that the battery was completely drained. Velma posited that it happened earlier when the electricity demon attacked them. The gang stood in the parking lot, tired, hungry and frustrated at the scenario they found themselves in.

“What are we going to do! The sun will be down in an hour and we are in the middle of nowhere! What if there’s wolves or something!” Daphne was starting to panic. Shaggy put an arm around her back to comfort her and she leaned into him. Scooby, sensing their stress, moved closer to the two and sat at their feet.

Fred started to pace, trying to think of a solution. He spoke aloud as he did, and Velma gave quiet interjections. Slowly the two came up with what they should do. _They were saved!_

“We’ll push the Mystery machine back to the main road, and then hopefully find someone to give us a boost” Fred said with determination.

_Maybe not._

“If not, we’ll sleep in the mystery machine and try again in the morning” Velma added.

And so they put the mystery machine in neutral and pushed while Scooby steered. Their combined strength made it slightly easier to push the heavy van. The four were just thankful that they didn’t have to push it uphill. If Shaggy was being honest, Daphne was putting most of the work in. He would remind himself to thank her for her summer long passion of building her athletic ability a couple years back. Her defense classes alone had saved them multiple times.

By the time they got to the main road, the sun had been down for a while and they were all physically exhausted. To their inconvenience, there was not a car in sight. There wasn’t even streetlights for what looked like miles. They pushed the mystery machine to a grassy clearing on the side of the road. Exhausted, Velma laid in the grass and looked at the stars. She gestured for the rest of the gang to join her and they found themselves laying in a circle with their heads beside each other. It was a clear night, and the lack of lights allowed them to see the stars better.

Shaggy thought about his time with the gang. They’d been friends since they were in high school and had been solving mysteries for about as long. They had been travelling together since they graduated. They had gotten themselves in all sorts of disastrous situations. They were each other’s closest friends, and Shaggy wouldn’t have it any other way. He loved them. He really did.

He had talked about his feelings with Scooby numerous times. Scooby, truly his best friend, always listened and offered the same advice: _just talk to them, what’s the worst that could happen?_

Shaggy always laughed at that. A lot could go wrong. What if they didn’t feel the same? What if he crossed a line? What did he even expect from them? They would probably hate him if they knew.

But when he was with Fred and Daphne and Velma, it felt right. He couldn’t explain it, but he felt like they were connected in a way that other people weren’t. Even at that moment, after hours of pushing a heavy van, just laying with the gang made him happy. He decided that he needed to tell them how he felt.

“I’m like, really glad to be stargazing with you guys.” He said, testing the ice. Scooby must have realized where Shaggy was going with this, because he snuggled into his side to offer silent support.

“Yeah, it almost makes it worth pushing that hunk of metal around for hours” Daphne joked.

“Hey! Don’t talk about her like that!” Fred whined in an overexaggerated tone, “she’s sensitive.”

“ _She_ shouldn’t be talking. She’s the one who gave out on us.” Velma said. They all giggled slightly before falling silent again. Shaggy could have left it at that. It was in his nature to want to; better to not test his luck. But this was important to him, and for once in his life he wanted to be brave.

“Have you guys thought about, like, what we’re gonna do when our road trip ends?” Shaggy questioned. A different kind of silence fell over the group, and for a moment Shaggy thought he had messed up. It was a couple seconds before Fred sat up and turned to the group.

“You don’t think we’re gonna go our separate ways, do you?” Genuine concern painted his face.

“No, no! that’s not what I meant” Shaggy scrambled to sit up as well, with the girls in close suit. Velma raised an eyebrow. They were all looking at him expectantly. It was now or never.

“Well, I just was thinking that, like, we’ve known each other for a long time now and, like, I’ve been realizing that even though I’m constantly terrified and wishing I had chosen a different career, I think getting to be around you guys makes it worth it. And like, you might not feel the same way and I understand but like, I think I love you guys? And I don’t care where we are or what we’re doing in a years time, but I know that I want to still be close with you.”

A new kind of silence fell over the group, Shaggy had a hard time deciphering it. He was about to curse his rambling when he was almost knocked over by one Fred Jones as he was encased in a hug. Fred was known for being a strong hugger, but this was the tightest he had ever hugged Shaggy. He felt weight on his sides as the girls joined the embrace.

“Do you really mean that?” Velma mumbled into his shoulder.

Shaggy nodded, trying his best not to cry. “I really do.”

Fred pulled away to look at Shaggy, He examined the boys face causing Shaggy to look away nervously.

“When you say love…” he searched for the words. He was cut off by Shaggy, who managed to summon every ounce of courage in his body to plant a kiss on Fred’s cheek.

“Love.” He said firmly. Fred jumped back into the hug, this time causing the four of them to tumble to the ground. They laid close together in the grass, laughing from the fall and teary-eyed from what came before. It was a while before they settled down, and even longer before Daphne spoke up.

“I feel the same. About all of you” she grabbed Shaggy’s hand and held it tight.

“I do too.” Velma said as she looked up to the stars.

Fred laughed from his spot next to Shaggy, “I’ve loved all of you since we’ve met. I thought I was the only one.” 

“Are you kidding me Jones? You think I would have come along to all these scary places otherwise?”

Scooby chuckled as he moved to lay closer to the gang. He mumbled something along the lines of _"You all are so oblivious"_

They laid in the grass for a while longer before they moved back into the mystery machine, feeling utterly exhausted. They would find someone to give them a boost in the morning, or whenever they woke up. But for now they needed sleep. As the gang laid together in the back of their mostly reliable van, they were filled with love and excitement as they started a new chapter of their relationship.

***

Years later Shaggy found himself building a fort in the bedroom of the apartment that he shared with his lovers. Velma made a makeshift projector that she used to project starts onto the roof of their fort. Fred and Daphne made popcorn and found a movie to watch on Velma’s laptop and the four of them plus Scooby made themselves comfortable in the pile of blankets. It wasn’t the most exciting anniversary they’ve had, but it felt special nonetheless. He grabbed a handful of popcorn and pulled Velma closer to him. As the four, filled with the same love and excitement they’ve always had, relaxed together, Shaggy couldn’t help but thank the electricity demon for draining the battery in their van all those years ago.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always I hope you enjoyed this! Please Please leave a comment telling me what you think! I would love some feedback.  
> Also, my left shift button isn't working properly so this has been a nightmare to type.


	4. The Marriage Discussion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A facetime with Daphne's parents makes Fred extremely frustrated. The rest of the gang does their best to comfort him. The concept of marriage comes up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey just a heads up there is some Ableism in this chapter directed at Daphne from her parents.

Fred only hated 4 people. He considered “hate” too strong of a word for most people he disliked, and his outgoing nature meant that he tended to see the good side in most of the people he met. It took a lot to get on his hate list. Daphne’s parents just so happened to be number’s 2 and 3 on said list.

The Blakes were a lot of things, millionaires, entrepreneurs, CEO’s of international corporations. They were not, however, good people. Fred hated how they treated Daphne, they refused to learn sign language for her and instead insisted that she learn to read lips. They belittled her both behind her back and to her face, and they resulted in a lot of the self esteem issues and poor eating habits that Daphne dealt with.

Unfortunately for him, they practically bankrolled mystery incorporated. This meant that once a week Daphne and Fred would have to facetime them.

Fred cursed whatever god thought it would be funny to make him their favorite member of the group. They adored him, or at least the idea of him. They didn’t approve of the mystery solving, the travelling, or even Daphne’s choice of friends outside of Fred, but of course they had to request that Fred join them on every call.

It wasn’t Daphne’s fault, of course. Her parents wouldn’t stop pressuring her to “find a good man” and settle down. So to stop their constant attempts to find her someone to marry, she told them that her and Fred were dating. It was the best solution at the time. They would not approve of anything that the gang had going on if they knew. Fred knew it would definitely not be a good situation for them, but he anticipated the day when they would find out why they really insisted on all four of them living together. The look on their face would be the perfect reward for the hours of his life Fred wasted listening to them speak.

“You know dear, purple is really not a good color on you” Mrs. Blake said, turning away from the camera to look offscreen somewhere.

“What? I didn’t catch that” Daphne said. Fred would normally repeat the conversation to Daphne when she had a hard time keeping up, but he didn’t think she needed to hear that. Mrs. Blake didn’t repeat herself, and Daphne just dropped it.

“So Fred tell me, are you planning on putting a ring on it anytime soon?” Mr. Blake said cheerfully. It took as much restraint as Fred could muster to stop from rolling is eyes. Instead, he put on an equally cheery smile.

“Well, I wouldn’t want to give away my plans with Daphne sitting right here, now would I” Fred said, ignoring the question.

Mr. Blake laughed before continuing, “Please, its not like she could hear you anyways.”

Fred didn’t respond, but it was becoming harder and harder not to snap completely. Daphne, the saint that she is, interjected before he could say anything else.

“It’s getting late here, we should probably go to bed” The perfect excuse, Daphne’s parents travelled so much that they had trouble keeping on track with time zones.

“Alright, we’ll let you go dear. Same time next week?” Mr. Blake said as if he didn’t just spend an hour practically ignoring his daughter.

“For sure, okay bye everyone!” Daphne said. They both waved as they disconnected from the call, and immediately made for the other room where they knew their lovers were waiting. Daphne clung onto Fred’s arm as they walked into the living room. Velma and Shaggy were both sitting on the floor. They were leaning against the couch, where Scooby had made himself comfortable, and were watching some horror movie. 

Daphne sat on the floor beside them, and Fred moved to lay across their laps. He sighed deeply into the floor as Shaggy played with his hair.

“Should we go to bed early?” Velma suggested.

“But we haven’t had dinner yet!” Shaggy said. Velma nudged him in the side. He nudged her back. Fred got up from their laps and ran a hand through his hair.

“He’s right” Daphne filled the silence, “Can we make dinner together?”

The gang moved to the kitchen. They decided to make spaghetti, with meatballs for everyone but Shaggy, who was a strict vegetarian. Shaggy assigned Velma and Fred the job of making the meatballs, while he and Daphne prepared the sauce.

Fred sat opposite of Velma at the table. She measured out the ingredients while he kneaded them together in a large bowl. He found the repetitive motion helped him calm down slightly. He was vaguely aware of the conversation that filled the room. Daphne was telling the others all about today’s shitshow of a facetime. He focused on his kneading, and soon it was ready to be rolled into balls.

Velma helped with that part, and the two of them quietly filled the pan with meatballs ready to go in the oven. Daphne put the pan in the oven while they washed their hands, and the three of them sat at the table. Scooby started to sniff around the floor, no doubt looking for some scraps that might have dropped. Shaggy laughed from his place standing in front of the stove.

“Like, Scoob, can’t you wait an hour?” he joked, knowing that the dog had an insatiable appetite. Fred laid his head down on the table and closed his eyes. He felt a hand on his back. It was comforting.

He kept his head down until dinner was done. The conversation flowed around him as the five of them ate their respective dinners. The sound of their muted conversations soothed him as he tried to sort out his thoughts.

When they were done dinner, Shaggy offered to do the dishes and clean up the kitchen. Daphne stayed with him in the kitchen while the others headed to their bedroom. Fred laid down on the mattress and buried himself in blankets, not bothering to change into proper pajamas. Velma found her way through the mass of blankets and cuddled into Fred’s side. She started to tell him about a new species of whale that she had read about, talking enough for both of them. He smiled into the top of her head as he listened to her stream of information. Velma always had a way of captivating whoever listened to her.

Soon Daphne, Shaggy and Scooby came into the room. Shaggy laid on Fred’s other side, and threw an arm across him, pulling him close. Daphne laid on the other side of Velma, doing the same. Velma paused her rant for a moment while they got settled, and then continued as if she had never stopped. They laid like that until they fell asleep, the sound of Velma’s voice soothing them as they drifted off.

***

When Fred woke up, the gang was sprawled across the mattresses on the floor. Fred himself had barely moved, but his friends tended to be incredibly restless sleepers, and their current sleeping space couldn’t contain them as well as the mystery machine.

Fred sneaked to the kitchen to make breakfast. By the time Shaggy had woken up, Fred was just finishing the first pancake. He flipped it onto a plate and handed it to the sleepy man. Shaggy mumbled a quick thanks before he started eating it.

“I forgot to say thanks for doing dishes last night” Fred spoke as he continued cooking. Shaggy looked surprised to hear Fred talk, but he smiled as he returned the gesture.

“And like, thanks for making breakfast today,” he made a cheers-ing motion with his fork and ate another bite of his pancake. Concern returned to his face as Shaggy continued the conversation, “how are you feeling, Freddy?”

“Better. I had a lot to think about yesterday, but I think I’ve worked it out” Fred Smiled, and the concern left Shaggy’s face once more.

Fred finished up the pancakes as Velma and Daphne entered the room. They each grabbed a plate and joined the boys at the table. Fred waited until Velma had finished her first cup of coffee before he spoke.

“Daphne’s parents want us to get married.” He blurted out. Shaggy and Velma looked between him and Daphne gently.

“Freddy, we knew that. They’ve been saying that for a year now” Velma placed a hand on his.

“I know. But her dad is getting more aggressive with it.” Fred sighed. He was so frustrated at the audacity of Mr. Blake.

“Have you guys ever thought about marriage?” Daphne spoke up, causing the other three to blush.

“I mean, we’ve talked about it before, right?” Velma said, her cheeks glowing.

“Yeah once, but like, we were totally wine drunk then” Shaggy interjected. Fred was once again silent. They _had_ talked about it, sure the wine may have influenced that conversation a bit, it wasn’t some new concept to them. Fred himself had thought of it quite a bit. Growing up he had never really cared one way or another, and he still held onto some of that sentiment. But he also enjoyed the idea of using the terms “wife” and “husband.”

“Are we doing this now? We’re going to have the marriage discussion at eight AM on a Tuesday?” Velma sat up in her chair, realizing the weight that had been added to the conversation.

“I want to get married.” Fred announced. Three pairs of eyes stared at him incredulously as he continued, “Maybe not now, we’re still young. But eventually. And not just for the financial benefits, we can work that out later. I want to travel the country with you all and solve mysteries and I want it to be known that I love you. All of you. And I want to be the best Husband. Well, I guess second best, next to Shaggy.”

He looked up to see the same pair of eyes staring at him, only they were glistening a bit more. Scooby came trotting into the room, cutting the tension in half. Velma moved her hand to Fred’s face, and he leaned into the touch, closing his eyes as he did.

“We’ll have to work out the logistics, and I assume you’ll want to do an actual proposal” Velma said, more to herself than to Fred. “But I think we could do it, if you all want it to.” She turned to Shaggy, who’s jaw was dropped slightly.

“I mean, you know I’ve always been pro-marriage. Like, Scooby’s even ordained!” He ruffled Scooby’s head, “If you wanted to make it official you should have just said so.”

Scooby seemed unfazed by the reality of the conversation and instead tried to swipe the remaining pancakes. Daphne was the next person to meet Velma’s gaze. She stood up, carrying her plate to the sink.

“Then I guess we’re gonna get married” she said cheerfully.

“Eventually” Velma corrected, a smile on her face. Fred smiled as he thought about what it would be like to be married to his lovers. His excitement grew when he thought of all the proposal options he had at his disposal. He tried not to get carried away thinking about it. He would have lots of time to plan that out, but for now he was content to just be with the gang, their presence filling him with love and excitement for the future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always hope you enjoyed this! I wrote this at 2 am so it might be a little rough, but I enjoyed it. Let me know what you think in the comments!


	5. A sleepy morning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Daphne has a hard time getting out of bed in the morning.

It was an unusually chilly day for the time of year, and Daphne considered just staying in bed. It would have been easy to, she was the first one awake, and she found herself with Fred pressed against her back. She felt his warmth and his gentle breathing as he held her in his arms. Shaggy and Velma were spread out on the other side of the mattress, and Daphne could see Scooby’s tail swaying gently as he slept.

Velma rolled over, causing her arm to fall on top of Daphne. She mumbled something quietly before returning to her snoring. Daphne examined the smaller girls face. It was somewhat of a rarity to see Velma without her glasses. It was a privilege that was reserved only for the gang (and the occasional monster that managed to catch her off guard.) Daphne could see the indentations where her glasses would sit. They left a pale spot where her freckles stood out more across the bridge of her nose. Velma had freckles covering her entire body, and Daphne loved to trace the constellations with her fingers, despite the other girls protests.

“I don’t see what the big deal is, they’re just a collection of pigment cells” she would always say. Daphne didn’t know much about the science behind freckles, and she didn’t really care that much if she was being honest. The way she saw it, they were just millions of tiny kissed from the universe contained on Velma’s skin. They were beautiful, even if Velma didn’t think so.

She watched as Shaggy sleepily felt around the mattress, only pausing when his hands found Velma. He shifted his body closer to hers and held her close before drifting back into a deeper sleep. Daphne felt herself grow warm at the sight.

When they first started hanging out, Shaggy had been _so afraid_ of physical contact with the others. It wasn’t anything personal, the gang knew, but when they found out exactly why he was so hesitant about the contact their hearts broke. At the time, Shaggy was still living with his parents who were, to say the least, assholes. A combination of their lack of boundaries and their abusive behavior meant that Shaggy grew up without experiencing casual physical contact. What’s worse was they managed to convince him that if he initiated physical contact with anyone he would be hated for it. The gang was pissed when they found out.

It took a long time and even more support from the gang, for him to come out of his shell. In actuality, Shaggy was the most affectionate of the group most of the time. Daphne smiled at that thought. He had come a long way, they all had.

Daphne reached out a hand, trying her best to not disturb Fred, and rested it on Shaggy’s arm as it was wrapped around Velma. He smiled slightly as he nestled himself further into Velma's back. Daphne thought about all the things she needed to do today. She had just started taking an online psychology course at the local university, and she had lectures to take notes for. Daphne looked over her lovers again, getting lost their gentle breathing, and allowed herself to relax into Fred’s arms, closing her eyes as she did.

Maybe she didn’t have to get up just yet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! sorry for the shorter chapter, but I just wanted to write something short and cute. Thanks for all the comments so far! comments make brain go <3 
> 
> anyways, hope you like it. I have lots of ideas for what to write next, so stay tuned for more :) 
> 
> thanks!


	6. Late Night Bonding

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Velma drinks too much coffee and cannot sleep. After having a nightmare Shaggy sits with her and they keep each other company.

Velma lived on coffee. She had been drinking it since high school, and she had no plans of stopping. It helped her think clearly, and be more sociable. The problem came on days when she drank too much. Velma had a habit of drinking 4-5 cups a day, which wasn’t great, and sometimes the effects didn’t wear off in time for bed.

It was nearly 2 AM, and Velma couldn’t sleep. She tried for a couple hours, but after counting all the tiles on the ceiling twice, she gave up trying. She moved to the living room and sat on the couch. Looking up to the ceiling she started counting the tiles.

_One, two, three, four…_

It had been a rough day. Everyone was starting to feel a little stir crazy. With no mysteries to keep them busy, the gang realized that they didn’t know what to do with themselves. Daphne coped by increasing the rate at which she picks up and drops hobbies. It was nice to have some semblance of normalcy despite everything.

_…thirty-four, thirty-five, thirty-six, thirty-seven…_

Fred coped by making things. His artistic skill increased significantly over the months. Velma knew he needed a tactile hobby to keep him grounded. That’s why she bought him a book about origami, along with some fancy paper. Since then, he had left little paper animals all over the apartment. At that very moment she sat beside a yellow crane that was placed on the armrest of the couch.

_…fifty-one, fifty-two, fifty-three. Fifty-three tiles on the living room ceiling._

Velma coped by… drinking coffee. She tried reading books, researching her interests, getting into a show. Nothing had worked, so coffee it was. Velma would have been fine with that if it wasn’t for the disturbance in her sleep schedule. She let out a long sigh before starting her count over.

_One, two, three, four-_

She felt a weight in the couch beside her. She looked to see shaggy, head in his hands. Velma held a hand out, and smiled when he took it.

“Can’t sleep?” he said with a tired voice.

“No, too much caffeine.” She expected him to frown at her, to tell her that he was disappointed, to scold her. She was surprised when he simply nodded and squeezed her hand ever so slightly. Shaggy leaned into Velma’s side as she wrapped her free hand around his shoulder. Velma yawned, both tired and wide awake, as she spoke: “why are you awake?”

“Nightmare” was all shaggy said.

“The one about clowns?” Velma shuttered slightly, she hated clowns.

“No, a new one. Zombies.” Shaggy told her all about his dream. It involved him being trapped in his elementary school, with zombies attacking him everywhere he went. He sounded tired, but she knew that he always had a hard time falling asleep after having a nightmare.

“That sounds awful, sorry you had such a scary dream” Velma said, trying to sound comforting. Shaggy laughed slightly.

“It’s okay. It wasn’t that scary. Like, I think we’ve done that one before” he replied. Velma remembered the mystery he was referring to. They were investigating a string of people “rising from the dead.” Although, they were trapped in a hospital, not an elementary school. She smiled slightly. She knew that he was putting on a brave face for her and was actually terrified from the dream.

Velma moved to lay across the couch and put her head in his lap. Staring up at the ceiling once more. Shaggy closed his eyes and brought a hand up to play with her hair. She looked up at him, focusing on the faint hairs on his chin. Shaggy had been trying to grow a beard for some time now, but the poor boy didn’t seem to be able to grow anything more than a bit of scruff. Velma thought it was cute, it suited him nicely.

They laid together for a while before Velma started counting the ceiling tiles again, trying and failing to relax enough to fall asleep. She was halfway through her fourth count when Shaggy spoke again.

“Any luck falling asleep?” he said gently.

“No.”

“Me either, you hungry?”

Velma nodded slightly at that, and the two made their way to the kitchen. Shaggy used the flashlight on his phone to navigate as he made them each a bowl of cereal. They sat in the dark and scrolled on their phones as they ate, periodically showing each other posts that they thought they would like. Velma appreciated Shaggy’s easygoing presence and was thankful for the company.

They finished their late night snack and moved back into the living room. They resumed their positions on the couch and continued to look at their phones, neither ready to fall back asleep. Velma showed Shaggy a video of a dog that was taught how to speak using a pad of buttons that said different words when pressed.

“Think we could train Scooby to do that?” the man joked.

“Scooby can already kind of talk.” Velma giggled as she spoke. Shaggy shrugged before handing the phone back to her.

“I mean, it might make him, like, easier to understand” Shaggy said, going back to his own phone. Velma agreed with that sentiment. It would probably benefit Daphne if she could see what Scooby was saying instead of having to have it repeated. And it would definitely save Scooby from having to do charades any time the gang couldn’t quite make him out.

Shaggy handed his phone to Velma. It was displaying a video of some kids doing DIY science projects in their house.

“Like, we should do this” he whispered. Velma was slightly surprised at the suggestion coming from Shaggy. He somehow had ended up being the most responsible of the five, and would usually advise against using up all their resources for a 2 minute chemical reaction. She smiled as she passed him back his phone and he returned the gesture. Some time passed before he spoke again.

“Hey, V? Can I ask you something?” he sounded nervous. She looked up to him and saw a hint of worry on his face.

“Of course,” she replied, “always.”

“Do you think Daphne’s parents are gonna like, make us move out?” his voice wavered slightly. Velma sighed. It was the newest item of conversation that Mr. Blake brought up every chance he could. _Don’t you and Fred want to settle down? Have your little friends thought about their long-term life plans? Wouldn’t you be happier moving into a more affordable one-bedroom apartment?_ They probably thought that the two were responsible for preventing Daphne and Fred from settling down. They weren’t exactly wrong about that.

Velma knew that Daphne wouldn’t let them be kicked out, but she also knew that ultimately, they were financially dependent on the Blakes. The gang hadn’t needed formal jobs when they were travelling, and they all had gaps in their work history. Velma wasn’t sure if they would be able to support themselves without the Blake’s assistance. It was a shitty situation.

“Do you want a truthful answer or a reassuring answer?” Velma said after pondering the question, It was always good to ask Shaggy for that kind of clarification.

“Truthful”

“Truthfully, I don’t know. I want to say that they wouldn’t actually interfere with their daughter’s life on that level, but we both know that they are complete assholes.” Velma said. Shaggy nodded along.

“What was your reassuring answer?” he said after a moment.

“We would think of some way around it if they did” Velma said plainly.

Shaggy smiled slightly before turning back to his phone. Velma knew that he knew she was right. She turned her attention back to her own phone once more. The two stayed silent for the rest of the night, quietly enjoying each other’s presence.

***

When Velma woke up, she was pressed against Shaggy’s chest, and the smell of bacon filled the air. He was already awake and looking down at her with loving eyes. Velma blushed as she got up off of the boy, stopping to help him up as well.

Together they moved to the kitchen to find Fred, who had just finished plating breakfast for the four of them. He smiled as they entered.

“Breakfast in bed!” he beamed, shooing them down the hallway towards the bedroom. The two obliged and entered the bedroom to see Daphne and Scooby cuddling. Shaggy quickly pulled out his phone and took a picture of the pair before joining them, Velma close behind him.

It wasn’t long before Fred came in carrying an impossible number of plates and cups. He even had Scooby’s bowl of food precariously stacked on his arms. Velma got up to help him distribute the food and they settled onto the mattresses. Shaggy was quick to swap Velma’s cup of coffee for his glass of orange juice, and Velma shot him a playful glare.

The five of them ate together, each of the humans trying desperately to keep Scooby from stealing the food off of their plates. Velma knew that they would have to have a serious talk about their financial situation sooner or later, but she wanted to enjoy the morning. Fred had worked so hard on breakfast, and frankly, she was still tired. She instead spent the morning wrapped up in pleasant conversation, content in knowing that despite all the challenges they faced, there was nothing in the world that would take their love away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I enjoyed writing this chapter. I love the dynamic between Velma and Shaggy, so it was nice to explore that here. As always I hope you enjoyed this. Please let me know what you think in the comments!


	7. Separated

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Velma, Shaggy and Scooby leave to stay at the Dinkley's house while Velma's mom recovers from surgery. Fred and Daphne have a hard time without them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey sorry it's been so long since my last update! I had a hard time focusing on things this week so I could only write a bit at a time.

“Are you sure you have to go?” Fred wined to Velma as she and Shaggy were getting ready to leave, their bags at the door. They were going to visit Velma’s mother, who needed to go for knee surgery. The two had offered to help her around the house for a few weeks while she recovered. Fred knew they had to go, of course, but that didn’t stop him from dreading their absence.

Velma chuckled, “we’ll be back in three weeks, but we’ll call every day.”

Fred smiled and pulled her into a hug. She wrapped her arms around him, giving a comforting squeeze. He could tell that she was nervous as well. The gang had never been separated for more than a day since they graduated, and the thought of sending the next three weeks not only apart but in different states was frightening. It was going to be a long few weeks.

They pulled apart slightly when Daphne and Shaggy entered the room, Scooby in close tow. Shaggy was going over a list of things he needed to remember to take with him. They stopped when they saw the other two, teary eyed and embracing in the hallway. Fred didn’t see her move, but Daphne was already burying herself in the hug. She was followed by Shaggy, who pressed his forehead into Fred’s shoulder.

Normally, they would have just all gone back to their hometown. They could have slept in the Mystery Machine, or camped out in Velma’s backyard. But things were different now, and it would have been too big of a group if they all went. _It was probably for the best_ , Velma had rationed one night, _they would have to learn to be apart sooner or later_. Fred had hoped that it would have been later rather than sooner.

“This is no fair!” Daphne huffed from deep inside the hug, “you guys get to hang out with Velma’s family while we’re here missing you!”

They laughed. They decided pretty early on in their relationship that Velma had the best mom. Dr. Dinkley was a very kind woman and was the most supportive parent they knew. She was protective towards the rest of the gang since day one, and her support had only grown since Velma told her of their relationship.

“Like, I won my ticket fair and square!” A joke. Although Fred would have competed to trade places with the other boy if he had the chance. He loved Velma’s family.

They hugged for a little while longer before pulling apart. Velma, Shaggy and Scooby grabbed their things before making their way to the door.

“We’ll call you when we get there, please try not to burn down the house” Velma joked as she opened the door.

“Like, love you” Shaggy said as he was ushering Scooby outside.

“Love you” a chorus of voices responded before the door shut, leaving Daphne and Fred alone in the apartment. They stood in silence for a moment before Daphne spoke up.

“Shaggy left the sweater he wore to bed last night in his dresser. It’s probably still warm.”

“Dibs!” Fred yelled as he made a break for the bedroom. Daphne grabbed his arm causing him to stumble backwards as they both raced down the hallway, both determined to claim their lover’s discarded sweater for themselves.

***

Daphne had won custody of the sweater, and she proudly wore it as she and Fred settled down in the living room, Fred on the floor while Daphne took the couch. They were watching an old space movie that Velma had pirated for them a while ago. Neither of them were really paying attention, and instead were scrolling through old photos on their phones.

Fred smiled as he watched a video he had taken a little over a year ago. They were at a beach somewhere in the south. Daphne was trying to teach Shaggy to surf, but it wasn’t going well, and the two took to splashing each other. Scooby was jumping around in the water with them while Velma and Fred watched from the shore. The camera panned to Velma, who was sitting under a beach umbrella, reading a book. She looked up and smiled at Fred moments before he was attacked, presumably from an excited Scooby, and the video ended.

Fred remembered that day fondly, they had just finished a mystery involving a man crab that was terrorizing the area and decided to spend the afternoon actually enjoying the beach. It was a good day.

He continued to look through his phone’s camera roll. There were a lot of pictures of the gang, most taken seconds before disaster. He came across an old photo of Velma and Shaggy, disheveled and halfway up a tree after betting each other over who could climb higher. Shaggy had won, but had a hard time getting down once he realized just how high up the tree he was. Fred laughed as he showed the picture to Daphne, who he now realized was crying slightly.

“Hey, Daph, what's wrong?” he said moving up to sit beside her. She wiped her tears and gave him a gentle look.

“It’s nothing,” she said, clearly upset, “I was just thinking that three weeks is such a long time. I miss the others.”

Fred wrapped the girl in a firm hug, allowing her to cry silently into his shoulder. Daphne was always the most emotional member of the gang, and Fred was surprised he hadn’t noticed her distress sooner. He cursed himself silently for not realizing that Daphne would take the separation the hardest.

He tried to think of something to say that would cheer her up, but he was never good at that kind of thing. Instead, he held her as close as he could and sat with her as long as she needed.

***

It was just before dinner when Fred got a video call from Velma. He and Daphne set themselves up in the kitchen for the call, Daphne smiling from ear to ear as they answered. Velma and Shaggy were sitting in the dining room of the Dinkley residence. They looked tired, but Fred was happy to see them just the same.

“How was your drive?” Daphne asked.

The other two went into a long rant about their day. There was apparently heavy traffic on the interstate. Fred was confused as to why there would be so many people traveling, but he pushed that thought aside and locked hos attention to his lovers.

“My mom says hi by the way” Velma said

“And Maddy too” Shaggy followed. Madeline Dinkley was Velma’s younger sister, although they were nothing alike outside of their appearances. While Velma was more academically-inclined, Maddy found her calling in the arts, planning to go to a clown school after graduating. The two were very close, and Velma had begun to miss her sister a lot. Fred was glad they could spend some time together.

Suddenly, the girl in question popped her head into frame. She gave a quick wave before leaving the shot again, causing Velma to laugh slightly.

The four conversed for about an hour before Velma and Shaggy had to leave for dinner. Fred looked to Daphne, who was smiling sweetly as she sat beside him. It was nice to see her in a better mood.

“Come on, lets go make dinner” he said, and the two made their way to the kitchen.

***

Fred couldn’t sleep. It was much too quiet in the room. Too empty. Daphne was laying with her head on his chest, her breathing slow and even. She had taken a long time to fall asleep, which was rare, but they both were really missing their lovers. He wondered how he ever got to sleep before he met the gang.

He considered himself lucky to have such amazing people in his life. The gang were always so supportive of his interests, even if they didn’t really care about it themselves. He wasn’t surprised when he realized that he had feelings for the three of them, they were wonderful people through and through. He was really shocked when Shaggy confessed that he also had feelings for the rest of the gang, and even more when the girls said the same. Fred never would have believed that his feelings could be reciprocated, but somehow, they were. He must have been the luckiest man alive.

Daphne mumbled in her sleep and pressed deeper into Fred’s chest. Fred relaxed into the contact, content to be so close to the girl. It had been a while since it was just the two of them.

A buzz came from his phone. He grabbed it from the floor beside him, careful to not disturb the sleeping woman on his chest. He squinted as he looked at the screen, surprised to find a message from Velma:

“ :/ ” It was a simple message, but effective. Fred returned the gesture.

“ :// ”

It was a few minutes before his phone buzzed again.

“S&S are asleep, but was a tough night” Fred frowned, he figured that they were having just as much trouble as he and Daphne were, but it still made him sad to have it confirmed.

“Same here, Daph is out now too” He replied.

They messaged back and forth for a while before deciding to call it a night. It reminded Fred of their high school days, when he and Velma would stay up late into the night messaging about anything and everything. It had always started with some mystery, or a trap idea, and then next thing they knew the sun was rising and they were collectively researching ancient civilizations, rare songbirds, or other extremely niche topics. They were tired a lot back then, but at least they walked away with more than enough random knowledge to keep them going, especially in their line of work.

Daphne shifted slightly, resting her head closer to his shoulder. Fred examined the redhead as she her breathing began to even out again. She always looked so peaceful when she slept, but Fred noticed that her face was more scrunched up than usual. He hugged her closer, and she nestled further into his neck.

They stayed close together until Fred finally felt tired enough to sleep. As his eyes grew heavy, he thought about the gang. His last thought as he was drifting off was the same thought he had been having the entire day: _the next couple of weeks are gonna suck._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! How am I doing so far? Is there anything you want to see from the characters in the future? Let me know what you think please!  
> Hope you're having a great night!


	8. Hometown and Heartbreak

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shaggy has a hard time adjusting to his visit to his hometown. Velma comes to the rescue.

Shaggy woke up to an empty bed. It took him a moment to remember where he was, but the orange walls that were covered in various space posters clued him into his whereabouts. He was in Velma’s childhood bedroom in Coolsville Ohio.

He stretched as he looked around the room. Velma had left behind most of her personal belongings when the gang went on the road (they could only take so much in the mystery machine), so her room was almost exactly as she left it. She had a cork board on the wall that was still covered with various notes and clues from old cases, and Shaggy smiled as he spotted various pictures of the gang amongst the clutter.

Scooby yawned as he roused from his dog bed, walking to the door. Shaggy could now smell the scent of breakfast that was causing both of their stomachs to growl.

“Alright buddy, lets go see what’s for breakfast” he said as the two made their way downstairs.

Velma and Maddy were already in the kitchen. Maddy was scrambling eggs at the stove while Velma was sitting on a stool at the counter, reading a newspaper and drinking what was undoubtably a cup of coffee. Scooby immediately went over to Madeline and started pawing at her, begging for scraps.

Shaggy chuckled as he took a seat beside Velma, giving a small wave as he did.

“Like, whatcha reading?” He asked playfully, attempting to snatch the paper from her. He was unsuccessful, and she shot him a glare.

“I haven’t finished my coffee yet, Rogers” she said. Her tone sounded harsh, but she moved so that Shaggy could see the paper as well. Velma was always irritable in the morning, and she normally wasn’t in the mood for conversation until she was on her second cup of coffee. The gang didn’t hold it against her. If anything, they found it amusing. Well, at least Shaggy did.

Madeline had just finished cooking when Dr. Dinkley came into the room. Shaggy helped her to sit at the table as Velma helped her sister plate the food. Shaggy gave Scooby his bowl of food before joining the other three humans at the table.

“You know Norville,” Dr. Dinkley said, causing Shaggy to cringe slightly, “I haven’t spoken to your mother in some time. You should call her and let her know you’re back in town, I’m sure she’d love to hear from you.”

“I’d like, prefer she didn’t know” Shaggy said. He looked to Velma, who’s face told him that he had probably been too blunt. He flashed an apologetic look to the others before continuing his meal.

The Rogers’ were a relatively high class family, and they were always very involved in the community. Shaggy always hated how well liked they were throughout the town. He despised their public image, and how it made him look like more of an outcast than he actually was. 

Growing up, he had always been an embarrassment. He was too quiet, he ate too much, he wasn’t good at social interaction, he looked too unkempt. There was always something wrong with him. They had already given up hope by the time he entered high school, and the gang’s reputation of being meddling troublemakers definitely didn’t do him any favors.

He burned any remaining bridges he had within his family when he came out. He tried not to think about it, but the things they said still kept him up at night. He hadn’t spoke to them since.

Of course, that made him more of an outcast.

Once everyone was finished eating Shaggy collected the plates and brought them to the sink. Velma and her mom got ready to leave for the hospital. Soon they were saying goodbye and giving last minute hugs before driving away.

Shaggy returned to the sink and started washing dishes. Scooby and Maddy followed him, and the latter dried and put away the clean plates.

“I’m pretty sure your folks have been ignoring all the social distance protocols,” Maddy said as she was reaching to put a mug away, “heard they were fined a couple times.”

Shaggy smiled at the prospect of his parents having to suffer the consequences of their shitty choices, although he knew a fine wouldn’t actually matter to them.

“Like, that doesn’t surprise me.” Shaggy said, trying to sound like he cared about the conversation. He was uncomfortable with one on one conversation with anyone outside of the gang, and even then, it took a few years to gain that comfort.

He finished the dishes and turned to Scooby, who was pawing at the door. Shaggy took the dog’s need for a walk as an excuse to leave the conversation, and he grabbed a leash as he headed towards his friend.

“Hey, you’re going on a walk? Why don’t I come too!” Madeline said cheerfully. Shaggy didn’t know how to turn down her offer, so he waited for her to get her shoes on before stepping outside.

***

They had been walking for a while in silence. Shaggy felt awkward. He could tell that Madeline was uncomfortable with the silence, but he didn’t know how to start any small talk. He looked up to the sky. It was a cloudy day, and it looked like it might rain.

“So uh, how has the road been treating you?” Madeline asked after a while. It was a fair question; this was the first time either Velma or Shaggy had been in Coolsville since they left for their road trip after graduating.

“It was good,” Shaggy said, accepting the conversation, “I miss travelling. It’s been tough living in one place.”

Madeline nodded. They walked past the town’s high school and Scooby moved closer to Shaggy, occasionally looking up at the boy to make sure he was okay. Shaggy had mixed feelings about high school. On one hand, he spent most of high school in a shitty living situation. But on the other, he had met the gang in high school. He didn’t know where he would be without them.

The five of them spent senior year planning for their road trip. Fred and Velma planned most of their route and Daphne worked out their finances. At the time, Shaggy wasn’t sure if he was even going to graduate. It took a lot of late nights studying with the gang for him to get his grades up. He really had them to thank for that.

Shaggy snapped out of his thoughts when he realized where they were headed. He stopped abruptly, causing Madeline and Scooby to give him an expectant look.

“Are you okay?” the younger girl questioned.

“S-sorry. Like, Its nothing. We should head back.” Shaggy managed to say, urging the others to return the way they came. Scooby immediately made a move towards the boy, but Madeline stayed put.

“We’ve already circled around. Its quicker to go this way.” She said, continuing down the road. They were a couple houses away from Shaggy’s parents house, and he really didn’t want to get any closer. What if they were home? What if they _saw him?_

“Er, I- well, you know… I’d rather just turn around.” Shaggy was starting to panic a bit. He hoped she would just listen to him.

She didn’t.

“I don’t see what the big deal is,” she rolled her eyes, “we’re almost home.”

Shaggy blinked at her, weighing his options, before turning around and walking away. It wasn’t her fault; she didn’t know about his family. He never really talked about it with anyone but the gang, and she had no reason to even know why he was upset.

He felt his heart beating faster as he hurried back down the road, his hands trembling as he gripped Scooby’s leash. The dog whimpered as they turned the corner, nearly bumping into a tall man who was walking the other way.

It took a moment for Shaggy to recognize his father. It took less time for his father to recognize him.

“Norville? Is that you?” The man questioned. Shaggy looked at the man, too afraid to move. It had been four years since he had seen either of his parents, and he would have preferred to keep the clock ticking. Now was not the time to address that. He needed to go.

And so, he was running with Scooby close in tow. Focusing more on the anxiety that bubbled in his chest than the direction his legs were carrying him.

He entered the forest that encircled the town, and found himself approaching the old tree house that the gang had once called their headquarters. He climbed up the tree, jumping to the window and crawling in, where he let the stairs down to allow Scooby to enter.

Convincing himself that he was safe, Shaggy sat on the floor of the treehouse and hugged his canine companion.

***

“Shaggy? Are you up there?” a familiar voice came from below. There was some shuffling before Velma peaked her head through the window. It had been a couple hours since he had run off. Velma crawled through the window of the treehouse and made her way to where Shaggy was settled.

“Maddy told me what happened. I figured you’d be here; I came as soon as I could.” She rested a gentle hand on his shoulder.

He looked to her, his eyes still wet from the crying he had been doing, and leaned into her touch. “L-like, I didn’t mean to sc- to scare anyone.”

“Can you tell me what happened?” The small woman said, although Shaggy was so curled in on himself that she almost seemed bigger than him. He wanted nothing more than to tell her everything, but the words wouldn’t come. Instead, he signed the simple phrase

_My dad_

Velma frowned. She moved to hold him in her arms, Scooby joining in on the hug. They stayed there for what seemed like forever before she spoke again. “Do you want to head back to my house? It will be warmer there. Plus we can call Daphne and Fred when we get back, maybe make something to eat?”

Shaggy analyzed the situation. Leaving the treehouse meant leaving the safety it provided. He didn’t know if he would run into his father again, and he definitely didn’t want to run into his mother. But then again, it would be different with Velma there, she was braver than him and in a way, she made him a little bit braver too. Besides, he was starting to get pretty hungry.

Deciding to trust his friend Shaggy stood, taking a moment to help Velma up, and lowered the stairway once more. She held his hand firmly as the three of them navigated through the forest towards the house. He would explain the situation better when he calmed down more and the rest of the gang was present. For now he focused on putting one foot in front of the other as the three made their way home together. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took me a while to write cause my standards for my writting have gone up a bit. I hope you liked this chapter. Hopefully next chapter will be happier than this one. please tell me what you think about the story so far. Thanks! <3


	9. Haircuts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Daphne gives the others haircuts and reflects on what she loves about the others.

It had been 12 hours since Velma, Shaggy, and Scooby returned from Coolsville, and Daphne made sure to keep them in her sight. She was sitting on the couch with Velma tucked into her side, and the other three spread out throughout the floor. Shaggy and Fred were playing a fighting game, which Fred was losing.

“No, No, No!” Fred yelled as his character went flying off the screen for the fifth time in a row. Shaggy turned and smiled to the girls before standing up and stretching.

“Like, sorry Freddy. Guess you’ll have to try harder next time” He joked as he moved to go get a snack. Fred leaned back against the couch, flashing a fake pout to the girls, who giggled in response. Daphne reached out and ruffled his hair before grabbing the controller out of his hand. He grabbed the controller that Shaggy left behind and they started another match. Fred was doing significantly better, but he was still no match for Daphne.

Shaggy returned to the room as Fred’s character was thrown off the screen once more. He let out a frustrated sigh as he gave his controller back to the taller man. Velma leaned forward and patted him on the back.

“Maybe we should take a break from video games for a bit” She said. Daphne leaned forward as well and pulled Fred closer to her.

“You know, your hair is getting pretty long. I could give you guys haircuts if you want.” Daphne suggested. It had been a while since she had cut their hair, and they all had all started to get a little scruffy. Even Shaggy, who, true to his name, normally had a rather unkempt hairstyle, was starting to look a little rough.

“Like, that’d be appreciated.” Shaggy said as he ran a hand through his hair.

***

Velma was first up. She sat in front of the bathroom mirror with Daphne standing behind her. She had shooed the boys out of the room in order to give her room to work; they both hated the sound of the razor anyways.

Velma seemed lost in thought as she stared at herself in the mirror.

“You’re so pretty.” Daphne said, resting her chin on the top of Velma’s head. The smaller girl blushed and looked away. It was always good to give Velma compliments about things that weren’t her intelligence. While it was true that she was smarter than most, insecurity about other aspects of her person tended to pick away at her. Daphne didn’t understand how the most wonderful, intelligent, kind, beautiful, amazing girl she had ever known could be so unsure of herself. So she made it a point to point it out whenever she could.

“Do you want your normal cut?” Daphne said, playing with the girl’s hair. Velma frowned before looking up.

“Should I change it up? I must be pretty boring with the same hairstyle all the time.” She said. It was like Velma to put herself down. Daphne turned her around in her chair and met her gaze.

“Velma. You are literally so beautiful, inside and out. I love everything about you, the boys will say the same! If you want to change up your style then we can do that, but don’t do it just because you think we don’t like you how you are.”

Velma was tearing up slightly. Daphne brought a hand to the girls face and caressed her cheek with her thumb. She kissed her once on the forehead before turning her back to face the mirror.

“I’ll have my normal cut, please” She said, taking off her glasses.

***

Shaggy was next to get his haircut. He was the easiest, just a few centimeters to get rid of any dead ends, and then making sure it looked even. His hair was naturally bushy, and he didn’t care that much on how it looked, so it was a simple job on Daphne’s end.

She was working on the back of his neck, which was by far the hardest part of his haircut. Shaggy despised the sound of the razor and would rather not get a haircut at all than have it be cut with one. This left Daphne trying to get an even line out of his baby hairs with scissors.

“Daph, like, don’t worry about it. It doesn’t need to be even.” Shaggy offered after 20 minutes of her trying to get it j _ust right._

“I know, but it’s the principle of the thing. I’m going to give you the best haircut ever” Daphne said firmly, although she resigned herself to working on the front of his hair instead.

 _We heard you and Velma._ The boy signed. Daphne frowned, putting down the scissors in order to continue the conversation.

_Do you think I handled it well? I just love her so much._

Shaggy thought for a moment before continuing. _You did great, she loves you too you know. We all do._

Daphne smiled before picking up the scissors once more. It was a while before Shaggy spoke again, a smile across his face.

“Like, hey. I love you man.”

***

Fred’s haircut was probably the most difficult one. Like Shaggy, he hated the sound of the razor, but he allowed Daphne to use it shortly, if only to trim the back of his neck. Fred had been rocking the “Average American Boy” cut since he was 5, and it suited him well, but it was a nightmare to get just right, and Daphne was a bit of a perfectionist about it.

She was brought out of her focus when she noticed that Fred was staring at her in the mirror. She looked up at him, and he smiled at her with his signature smile. Fred had the best smile. He had a natural charisma that allowed him to win the hearts of anyone he spoke too, despite his lack of certain social skills. Fred really was dreamy. At least, Daphne thought so.

“Sorry if this is taking too long. I want to make it look good.” Daphne said. It had been about 45 minutes since she had started.

“I don’t mind” Fred replied. If it were anybody else, Daphne wouldn’t have believed them. But Fred was patient in ways that others were not, and Daphne thought he looked genuine enough.

She returned to trimming his hair, and he continued to look at her.

“What!” She said, looking up again.

“Oh. Uh sorry,” He blushed, finally looking away from her, “I just think your pretty when you’re focusing.”

She tried to play it cool, but the warmth in her cheeks told her that she was blushing as well. She took her time for the remainder of the cut, Fred watching her with love in his eyes. The others were probably bored and had most likely moved on to do other things, but Daphne always enjoyed her alone time with Fred. It always felt like it would never end.

But of course, it did. As Daphne finished meticulously snipping at his hair, they began to sweep the bathroom. When they were satisfied, they moved to find the others.

***

Shaggy was always the one to cut Daphne’s hair. It was easy, just a straight line along her back. It would curl naturally, so it didn’t matter if it was a bit crooked.

“hand.” he said firmly, motioning with his free hand. She was confused, but obliged to the request. She was bewildered when he placed a bundle of her hair onto the palm of her hand. He giggled at her confusion as he brushed the hair off of his clothes.

Velma and Fred were standing in the doorway, each sporting their signature styles. Her friends have grown a lot over the years, but Daphne felt at peace knowing that her some things never change. She would always have Velma who is beautiful and Shaggy who is kind, and Fred who is patient. And that’s more than she could have ever hoped for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :) enjoy! Honestly I really enjoyed writing this chapter. If you liked it please leave a comment! (and thanks for all the comments so far) also my tumblr is @/dogdogdog if you want to follow me there :)
> 
> by the way, I didn't mention it in this but Velma definitely has an undercut.


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